It was a no brainer really. Being brought up surrounded by stories of mermaids, giants and mischievous piskies they were always going to seep into my work. Cornish folklore has a wonderful cast of magical beings so why wouldn't I use them in my stories.
The series I'm working on now consists of five or six books for middle grade each a collection of myths based on a particular legend but with a child-friendly take. There's some VERY bloody and gruesome stories mixed in with the legends so I had to pick and choose.
There's humour and charm in many of the stories and I was able to make good use of that. And I'm using the Cornish language itself. Unusual place names and story-telling rhythms add authenticity and interest.
It's a lot of fun revisiting many of these local myths and learning more. It's quite the undertaking and I'm only on the second book but enjoying it immensely. I hope the kids will too.
2 comments:
Sounds wonderful!
Your Cornish legends books sound wonderful, Sharon, and these images look pretty wonderful too.
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